Final Blog 5

Reflection:This has been one of the most challenging classes I have ever taken.  I put it in the category of a Speech class it took me three times to attempt, all for personal reasons.  One thing I learned from that instructor was that we all have to do things that we don't want to do, but just do them and you will feel better that you accomplished that.  The paper itself is something that I procrastinated doing, but being that I got as involved as I did for my advocacy topic of parental involvement, it made me want to complete it.  Getting back to the speech class analogy, the class was uncomfortable because of it's nature, but once completed, I still use tools when I have to talk to a group of people that I learned from that class.  Sometimes you don't always learn the specific topic you are studying about, but you learn things that make you a better person.  The traits of patience, persistence, and tenacity ring true with this paper research project.  It also made me grateful to know that I was not alone and that my classmates helped me carry through.  Thank you for Sisie and all of my classmates, good luck in the future!

Advocacy Blog #4 Vickie Chedgy

     Early childhood professionals may support families efforts by writing a quick note thanking them for donations or spending time in the classroom.  The teacher can make a mental note of something they heard the parent say and expand on that.  For instance, a parent may be a graphic artist or a computer whiz and the teacher can ask the parent to share their skill for maybe a half an hour.  I know personally my children would feel proud when I was in their classroom, in the elementary years.  My kids didn't have to go to a daycare so I was very lucky.  However, now that I own my own daycare, I see what it needed and that is the connection from home to school and vice versa for the child to feel confident in that there is a continuity in the relationship at home and at their school with those in their lives. 

     I know that in my business, I am always communication with parents via my website, emails, newsletters, texts throughout the day, and even get together, such as a Bunco game I have periodically on Saturday evenings with free childcare if needed ( I incorporate my daughter for this task). The Learning Tree Daycare that I am observing is willing to work with me in how to get the parents more involved.  As I interacted with the director and the three teachers this week at the center, they seem to look forward to my visits and my ideas.  Ever since the Valentine's Day fiasco (I call it a fiasco as only 2 parents showed up to their annual breakfast with their child), the center realizes parents have to get more involved with their children there as the teachers are starting to get agitated and that could reflect on the child without realizing it.

     I learned that the teachers have been more observant about the parent involvement in their classroom since I have taken on this research paper.  We last discussed donations and how it seems as if always the same parents "donate the goods".  I suggested putting in a newsletter gently used items so that all the parents can participate.  In this economy, it is very hard to contribute even for your own family, much less for a classroom.  

     I know for a post office activity or theme, the parents can donate the address stickers they receive from charities as well as envelopes for remittances they don't need.  The parents probably throw these away anyway.  Also, older clothes that can be utilized for the dress up area are always appreciated and it will connect the child to their home one other way.   

     I think that following up is the key to parental involvement.  To ask of a parent to bring something in or to attend something a few weeks in advance is fine, but a teacher can show enthusiasm as the date or task draws near. 

     Lastly, I find myself defending the parent sometimes as the teachers tend to get biased in their feelings of the parents at the center I am observing.  An example of this was when a dad dropped his daughter off and mentioned he had the day off.  I asked why the two teachers didn't ask him to stay and maybe read or hang out with the class.  The teachers looked at me, didn't blink and stated: "Oh no.  He isn't like that." 

Module 3 Blog - Vickie Chedgy

·         How will you address advocacy issues with professionals in your setting?

     I have been addressing my advocacy issue of Parent Involvement, and how to communicate to the parents how and why it is needed.  I have been working with the professionals at the Learning Tree Daycare Center in Island Lake IL by going on a consistent basis, leaving them with information to think about for the next time I visit.  I average visiting around two times a week.  As I leave my own home daycare to visit, I get a lot of insight about my own daycare and what I would like to incorporate.  A big issue is the topic , I learned in my own daycare that I need to incorporate parent involvement.

·          How might you find out more about or possibly become in involved with current advocacy programs in your setting?

     I am and will get more involved with the 4-C agency (Community Coordinated Child Care) of McHenry County.  This is an advocacy agency whose mission is to promote children's well-being by advocating for quality affordable child care (four-c.org).  This agency helps families find quality providers and help with child care assistance.  They help the provider with tools and resources such as provider networking, information on becoming, as well as staying, a provider with trainings, and resources for funding such as grants to upgrade their center or home daycare.

·         What kind of difference would you like to make in your setting, your community, or your field?

     I visited the Learning Tree Daycare Center today for their annual Valentine's Breakfast that they provide for the parents that promotes the parent to stay with their child for breakfast between the hours of 7:30-9:00.  I got there around 8:30 and saw one of the children's  grandfather was there laughing with the children and eating with his grandson whom I had seen before on a previous observation.  I asked one of).  I looked at the centers license and noticed they are licensed for 90 children.  The director had once shared with me they are about 3/4 full which would ballpark enrollment to be around 67 children.  I asked the teacher who was overseeing it, beside the grandfather I saw, how many parents showed up for their breakfast? She stated one.  My mouth dropped.  I feel I would make a difference with utilizing resources I will spell out in my paper for this class as well as getting the center on board with these resources.  That is too sad for two people to be able to stay when I viewed at least 3 dozen children there that I could see in the building.  I would like to show the parents how effective communication will work with the teachers while having effective involvement in their children's classroom that will reflect on their education.

Community Coordinated Child Care. 2007. www.four-c.org.

Vickie Chedgy's 2nd Blog Post Module 2

I am interviewing the staff at a center called The Learning Tree in Island Lake, IL.  The facility has one classroom for each age group that includes an infant room, a 2 year-old, a 3 year-old, a 4 year-old, and a 5 year-old through Kindergarten age room.  The transition into each classroom is on their birthday from one to the next older one.  The classrooms are in a circle as you walk in and you have to be buzzed in with a code that each parent has.  There is children's work of art in the hallways as well as in the classrooms.  The site was established in 1973 and it has a feel of such to it.  The rooms have a lot of wooden furniture and unfortunately does not seem that updated with the equipment that I saw such as the "Comb Barbie Head" and most of the materials are worn.  The enrollment is down, but that is such in our McHenry County as I am on the board of a network of home daycare providers. 

     I had done an observation here for a nutritional class and found the teachers styles to be different even with the nutritional  issue.  Some would make the children try something before giving them seconds on their favorites,  whereas some would have them eat the first plate in it's entirety before serving them seconds. 

     I spoke and interacted with the director and five of the teachers here as the facility is not that big and the staff interacts with each as sometimes they have to cover for the other for breaks and such.  The majority of my interviewing was with "Cindy" who is the 2 year-old teacher who on one of the days was integrated in with "Jackie" who is the 4-5 year old teacher.  That is a big difference but they were short staffed in that even the director was absent and no one could cover the front desk.  One way I was going to approach my paper was the involvement of the owner, (i.e. should she come in and cover) but realized after my interview I will go down the path of parent involvement with the teacher and there child's classroom and how to incorporate the class back to home. 

     The challenges related to my original topic of the communication between the parent, teacher and owner/director was how to zoom in.  I seemed to have lost sight that the paper is for child advocacy, not about the adults.  Therefore, I decided to narrow down and focus on the communication between the parents and the teacher in how the parent can get more involved in their children's classroom and how the teachers can carry the classroom over into the children's home. 

     In talking to "Cindy" the 2 year-old teacher, we had discussed how the parents communicate with her about their child.  An insight I gained was that she is not involved in the enrollment process to get to know the parents and the children, the director is.  Cindy will talk to the parents at conferences (which is twice a year and she states maybe two parents will sign up as it is on a volunteer basis).  The other crucial time to talk with the parents is pick up and drop off but the parents pretty much zoom in an out.   She states she has much to share with them but they don't have the time.  I am hoping to shed some light on this subject of the communication between the parent and the teacher.  Cindy's face lights up when she speaks of the children in her care and I also hope to shed light on how well the children are taken care of outside of the home and it goes beyond being a "babysitter". 

V Chedgy First Blog Submission

                      The site that I chose to do my research paper on is a childcare preschool facility in the town that I live.  I own a home daycare so to visit a center is always fascinating to me to get new ideas (hopefully).  My first thoughts on a topic I chose would be the racial bias/bullying aspect and how early does this behavior start?  I was a little disappointed with my first visit as the teacher for the 5-6 year-old classroom I was supposed to interview was sick.  I did interview two other teachers, however, from the 3-4 year-old classroom.  Some of the issues shared from the two teachers and the director was childhood nutrition, parents treating the teachers as babysitters versus the professional teachers that they are, communication and expectations between the owner, director and staff as well as communication between the staff and the parent of the children they teach.  I did get a chance to go back a second day and interview the 5-6 year old teacher and she stated her concerns are childhood nutrition as well as the teachers getting no credit for what they do in the eyes of the parents.                                                                                                             These interviews influenced my decision about which area of interest and topics to choose for my research paper as none of them seemed  to have a correlation to my original thought on the beginning stages or issues or race bias/bullying.  An example of why I chose what I thought would be the direction of my paper is that I have a 5-year old girl in my home daycare.  My one 9-year old in my care came up to me one day and stated the 5-year old called him gay.  I asked her why and she said because he doesn't have a girlfriend.  Another issue along that same path is about bullying as well as how children see the differences in someone not of their own ethnicity.  My town does not have a varied amount of ethnicities and I thought I could go somewhere with this.  Through the interviews though, I learned that it probably is a learned behavior and one that comes out in older years, out of the age-scope of this center.  So I decided to let this topic rest.                                                 Therefore, the area of interest I am thinking of focusing on for my paper could either be the general topic of communication or how to get the parents to recognize what the teachers do for their child.  The related three specific topics would be how to have the parent communicate more of what is going on in that child's home life to make a better transition to their classroom, how to have the provider communicate better with the parent in how the child is doing and what the child is doing in their classroom to carry back over into the home, and finally, how to get the support of the actual center in helping with this, which would address the concern of the teachers that they are not on the same page with the owner and director as to what is expected of them.  I think when the communication is started or implemented, the three entities would become satisfied.                                                                                                                            My previous paragraph sounds broad to some, but it has narrowed down a bit for me.  Does anyone have any ideas how to have me tie this together or is it just too broad?  Any thoughts on my pursuing the issue of race/bullying etc. that you see where you work in the early years?

I am not sure if I am doing this correctly so hopefully I will be up by tomorrow.  Wish me luck as I do not know about the RSS feed.  Any suggestions?

Vickie Chedgy's first blog

I hope this works!  Considering I have been down with the flu for the last two days, I have some energy left in me to complete this!
Wishing everyone well with their research papers and looking forward to blogging with everyone.